Plate from "Scenographiae..."
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
sheet: 8 1/2 x 6 9/16 in. (21.6 x 16.6 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Phyllis Massar, 2011
Accession Number
2012.136.569.2
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This etching, created around 1560 by Hans Vredeman de Vries in collaboration with printmaker Johannes van Doetecum I, forms part of the series *Scenographiae*. The small sheet captures an intricate urban vista filled with buildings, bridges, canals, and boats, showcasing the period’s fascination with architectural perspective and harmonious city design. As a work classified under Ornament & Architecture, it exemplifies how prints served both decorative and instructional purposes in the Renaissance. Vredeman de Vries, a leading Netherlandish designer, used etching’s fine lines to render depth and spatial complexity on a modest scale of roughly 8½ by 6½ inches. Such plates helped disseminate innovative ideas about urban planning and theatrical stage sets across Europe, influencing architects and artists alike. Today in the Metropolitan Museum’s collection, the print offers a vivid window into sixteenth-century visual culture and the growing role of reproductive media in shaping public taste for idealized landscapes.
About the Artist
Johannes van Doetecum I|Hans Vredeman de Vries (Netherlandish|Netherlandish) · 1528 |1527 –1605 |1606
Netherlandish, 1528/32–1605|Netherlandish, Leeuwarden 1527–1606 (?) Antwerp (?)